


A Temper That Redefines Temper

by eating_custardinbed



Category: Falsettos - Lapine/Finn
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arguing, Domestic Violence, Everyone Is Alive, F/F, F/M, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-31
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2019-07-04 17:03:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15845592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eating_custardinbed/pseuds/eating_custardinbed
Summary: "The last thing that Trina was expecting was the man who had broken up her household and ended her marriage to turn up at her doorstep, with tears streaming down his face and a red handprint branded into his cheek"





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> In other words, Marvin is a dick, gets angry and loses his temper with Whizzer. Whizzer doesn't know where to go, so heads for the only other home who knows.

The night was still young, streetlights only just starting to twinkle outside the window. Jason was sat in the corner playing chess with Dr Charlotte, Cordelia sat next to her lover and giggling at the doctor's complete inability at chess, against a 13-year-old, no less. Mendel and Trina were curled up together on the sofa watching Netflix and holding each other. The air was comfortable and homely. 

There was a sudden knock at the door. All five heads looked up in confusion: they weren't expecting anyone else. Trina untangled herself from Mendel, casting a questioning look to the two other women. The lesbians from next door simply shrugged. 

The last thing that Trina was expecting was the man who had broken up her household and ended her marriage to turn up at her doorstep, with tears streaming down his face and a red handprint branded into his cheek. 

"Whizzer?" she gasped, gently covering her mouth with her hand. 

"I'm sorry," Whizzer choked out, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his leather jacket. "Really, I'm sorry!" 

"No, you don't have to be sorry," she shushed, taking her hand away from her mouth and softly pulling him inside, shutting the door behind him. She lightly pressed a finger to his marked cheek: Whizzer hissed in pain, but didn't pull away. "What happened, Whizzer?" 

"It-it doesn't matter," Whizzer sniffed, his eyes examining the carpet. "I think it might be best if I just went." 

"No, I think you'd better stay," Trina said, leading him into the living room. When Whizzer saw everyone sat there, he felt even more embarrassed than ever. He felt the tears coming back and looked down hurriedly. 

"Wh-Whizzer?" 

Jason was the first to speak, getting up from his chess game and coming towards the taller man. Whizzer looked at Jason before pulling him into a hug, burying his face in Jason's hair. Even so, he could feel everyone's eyes on him. 

Jason pulled away, looking at Whizzer's tear-stained and marked face. 

"Did he slap you?" he asked. Whizzer sniffed and nodded. 

It took a moment or two for the adults in the room to realise what the two were talking about. Trina gasped, grasping Mendel's arm. Charlotte and Cordelia looked at each other in mutual shock. 

"Do you mean to say, Jason, that your father hit Whizzer?" Mendel said, putting his arm around Trina. Jason nodded as if it was the most common thing in the world. 

"It happens very rarely," Whizzer said. Everyone turned to him. He was now sitting on the floor, his arms resting on his knees. "In fact, this is only the second time." 

_"I swear to God, you're such a prick!" Marvin yelled. Whizzer made an indignant noise from the other side of the room, running his hands through his hair._

_"I didn't do anything!" Whizzer shouted back, hands on his hips._

_The two were fighting again. It was the first proper fight they'd had since they had got back together, and to be quite honest, neither of them could remember what they were fighting about. Maybe it was the dishes. Or how late Marvin had got back from work. Or how Whizzer had accidentally-on-purpose thrown out Marvin's vomit-coloured shirt._

_"You threw out my shirt!" Marvin shot back._

_"You weren't back until nearly ten last night!" Whizzer threw the protest straight back. "Didn't even call or anything!"_

_"Do I have to tell you my every move? Would you like me to text you every time I so much as get up!?"_

_"I would have liked-"_

**_Crack!_ **

_Whizzer was cut off by Marvin's hand making contact rather harshly with cheek. Holding back tears, he put a hand gently to his cheek, feeling the stinging, hot flesh. Marvin looked between Whizzer and his hand, looking thoroughly shocked as his mind processed what had just happened._

_"Whiz, I-"_

_Whizzer was already out of the door._

"I can't believe that Marvin did that!" Trina raged. Whizzer was sat on the couch, trying to wipe the tears away from his cheeks, but the infuriating things seemed to keep coming. Mendel placed a hand on his wife's shoulder to tell her to calm down. It didn't work. "Oh, I'm going to murder him!" 

"It's not his fault," Whizzer said thickly through his tears. Charlotte squeezed his hand to tell him that he was okay. 

"How can you not blame him!?" Trina asked, appalled. "He hit you!" 

"He can't help it," Whizzer explained. "You should have seen the look on his face, Trina! He looked so upset, so ashamed. He didn't mean to, truly." 

"I did notice that when he was in therapy," Mendel mused. 

_"Happy or sad?"_

_Marvin opened his mouth to respond before remembering Mendel's stance on that question and snapping his mouth shut, pressing his lips together in a thin line._

_"I see you've learnt," Mendel chuckled, flipping open his pad. Marvin growled. Actually growled. The psychiatrist stopped and stared at his patient._

_"Don't patronize me, Mendel," Marvin snapped his fist clenching on his knee. Mendel leant forward, intrigued yet worried._

_"Marvin, are you okay?" he asked, leaving off the the usual formal "mister". "Is everything alright with Whizzer?"_

_"Whizzer's fine, he's waiting in the car," Marvin said, but the usual dreamy note to his voice was missing, as if he were distracted. "Why do you ask?"_

_"You seem... different."_

_Marvin took one look at Mendel before burying his face in his hands. Mendel tried to stay professional, refrain from any physical contact, but his feelings overwhelmed him and he rested his hand on Marvin's shoulder._

_"I'm just so mad all the time," Marvin said hoarsely, his voice muffled by his hand. "I don't know why. Whizzer and I have fought more than usual, neither Jason nor Trina will talk to me... I feel so alone and angry!"_

_Mendel sat in silence for moment, letting Marvin cool off before continuing._

_"Look, I don't think I'm fully equipped to help you with this," Mendel said gently as the other man brought his face out of his hands. Reaching into his pocket, the psychiatrist handed Marvin a small business card, which he examined with some interest. "This guy might be able to help you."_

_Marvin seemed to have reached the profession part of the card, as anger flashed across face and he looked up at Mendel with furious eyes._

_"I don't need anger management," he snarled, getting up and storming it with a spectacular slam of the door._

The atmosphere in the room was sombre. Whizzer was surprised that he still had tears left to cry, but here they were, his constant sniffing and shuddering breath the only thing breaking the silence. Marvin had struck him so hard that his face was starting to puff up and bruise, the constant pressure of his hand wiping away the tears actually hurting now. Dr Charlotte noticed his slight hisses of pain and came forward, concerned. Whizzer knew immediately what she wanted, and let her examine his face, managing not to swear aloud even when she hit the most tender spots. 

"Whizzer, you've got a decent lump on the back of your head as well," Charlotte said, her voice laced with concern. "Did he really slap you with enough force to send you down?" 

"No," Whizzer said, but this was an obvious lie as his eyes slid left and focused on the floor. "Hit my head getting off the subway." 

Charlotte didn't seem convinced. 

"Jason, can you go and fetch me a couple of ice packs, packets of frozen peas, just something cold please?" she said to Jason, who nodded and ran off to the kitchen. "Whizzer, just stay awake for me to check you out, and then I promise you can go back to sleep." 

Whizzer's head jerked up and he nodded, yawning. Trina gently guided the tall man's arms out of his jacket, Mendel disappeared upstairs to fetch some bedding and Cordelia was sent into the kitchen to make a cup of chamomile tea. 

"All this just for me," Whizzer murmured, his voice sleepy. "I feel special." 

"As hard as I know it is for you, could you please shut your mouth for two minutes so I can check you out?" Charlotte replied, raising an eyebrow. 

For once in his life, Whizzer did as he was told. 

Ten minutes later, Whizzer was fast asleep on the couch, an ice pack resting on his cheek. The assessment was that the lump would go down naturally, but his face would be very bruised and very sore for at least a few days. His temperature was a slightly high, but Charlotte said that it was nothing to worry about. Jason was upstairs getting ready for bed, the lesbians were talking in hushed voice next to the sleeping man whilst Mendel and Trina were in the kitchen. 

"Trina, calm down," Mendel begged as his wife paced the length of the too-small kitchen. 

"How can I with my ex-husband's lover lying asleep in my living room with a bruised face from said ex!?" Trina shot back angrily. 

"It's done now though, isn't it?" Mendel exclaimed, catching Trina's arm. "Your fretting won't change what happened. All we can do is move on from it and focus on the present."

"I know I should hate him, but I don't," Trina said suddenly. Mendel gave her a curious look as if to say  _go on._ "Whizzer, I mean. I know he ended the marriage, but I've just never seen Marvin as happy as he is with Whizzer. I just hope the damn jackass realises what a huge mistake he's made." 

Then the doorbell sounded again. 


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Marvin shows up to apologise, he's faced by the rest of the tight-knit family and the consequences of his actions. In the midst of the whole thing, Marvin travels back to his marriage with Trina and his first meeting with Whizzer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally have no idea where this is going, but I hope you enjoy this

Mendel knew immediately that he wasn't going to be able to stop Trina doing anything. He'd never been able to stop her from doing anything, but in that moment, as he watched his smoking hot wife storm towards the front door, walking with more purpose than she ever had before with her fists clenched at her sides, Mendel just felt sorry for the poor man on the other side of the door. 

Trina wrenched the door open, ready to scream and shout, but when she clapped eyes on the man in front of her in his sorry state, all of her anger just melted away. 

"You're a bastard," she managed to say, shaking her head but unclenching her fist. "You're such a bastard." 

Marvin nodded, his eyes glued to the pavement as tears flowed down his face.

"Please, is Whiz here?" he begged, obsessively twisting a button on his jacket. "I need to talk to him." 

"He's here but I'm not letting you in," Trina said, flexing her jaw. 

"Why not!?" 

Marvin's voice had risen to a shout and he looked angry again. Trina stepped backwards: she'd already seen the product of his fury. 

"Be quiet," she hissed, gathering up all her courage before stepping outside and closing the door behind her, standing in front of it so Marvin couldn't get in. "Because Whizzer's asleep and you need to calm down." 

"Please, I need to see him," Marvin said, the anger melting away again. Trina was very confused: maybe she should have let Mendel handle this. 

"No, not until you tell me what the hell you were thinking when you hit him!" she demanded.

"I don't know!" Marvin shouted back, running his hand through his hair, but unlike Whizzer, his hand got stuck in the tangles and he had to wrench his hand out with a hiss of pain. "I didn't want to hit him, but he was shouting and I was shouting and it was all just too much!" 

Trina smiled softly, not in a cruel or mocking way, but in a way which showed that she understood. 

"Is he okay?" Marvin asked in a muted voice. Trina watched as some of the stitching holding the button on came unraveled. "Trina, I need to know he's okay." 

"I think you'd better see for yourself," she said grimly, standing back from the door. He looked at her in disbelief, silently thanking her before rushing into the house, the house that used to be his house, their house before he divorced his wife, left his child and ran off with a friend. Trina followed, closing the door quietly behind her. 

Somehow, even with all the commotion, Whizzer was still asleep. Marvin stopped dead in the doorway, breath catching in his throat as he watched his lover shift in his sleep, the ice pack falling to the floor with the movement and exposing the bruising. Marvin gasped and pressed a hand to his mouth to stifle his sobs. 

Mendel was the first to do something. Taking Marvin by the arm, he lead the other man into the dining room and let Marvin cry his heart out on his shoulder. 

"Oh God, Mendel, I need anger management," Marvin sobbed. "I didn't mean to hit him, but he doesn't know that! Does he hate me? Does he blame me?" 

"He doesn't blame you," Mendel said, remembering Marvin's past aversion to physical contact and refraining from touching him. "He knows you didn't mean it: he told us himself." 

"Did he really?" 

Mendel nodded, smiling supportively. Marvin gave a wobbly smile back. 

"God, my shirt is going to be ruined- no, seriously, Trina, I wanna see him, stop fretting," Whizzer's voice drifted in from the living room, still groggy from sleep but still strong and cocky nevertheless. Marvin looked up in shock and panic, eyes shifting frantically around the room as if looking for somewhere to hide. He spotted the downstairs bathroom, and before Mendel could stop him, sprinted into it and locked the door behind him. 

"Mendel? Where's Marv, I wanna talk to him," he heard Whizzer say. He collapsed against the door, drawing his knees up to his chest. He heard Mendel gibber uselessly. He heard Whizzer sigh and ask again, with more force behind his voice this time. He heard Mendel cave and tell Whizzer that he, Marvin, had locked himself in the bathroom. As he heard all of this transpire, he thought back to that fateful day he knew he'd never forget for all of his days. 

_Marvin yawned, watching from the kitchen table as Trina prepared breakfast, Jason next to her watching and throwing in the odd comment. This was the tight-knit family Marvin had always wanted, always dreamed about. Domestic bliss, some would call it. Marvin wouldn't._

_"Poached or scrambled, honey?" she asked, pulling him out of his thoughts._

_"Hm?" he said before realising what she'd said. "Oh, just toast for me. Have to get off to work."_

_Trina frowned but nodded._

_"What time will you be home?" she said, passing him a plate of buttered toast._

_"Late," he replied simply. "I have a work dinner, and you know what the subway's like late at night so I'll probably kip at a buddy's house. Treat yourself to a ladies' night, huh?"_

_She smiled and nodded, but Marvin could see the disappointment in her eyes. He felt a flash of guilt rush through him, so he grabbed his briefcase, hugged his son, kissed Trina on the cheek and headed to work._

_That's the lie he'd told his wife, and the reason why he was currently sitting in a gay bar in the center of the city, clutching a whiskey close to his chest and admired the spectacular view of the sheer amount of good-looking men on the dance floor. The music was so loud that he could feel it thumping through his body, and he was surprised that it couldn't be heard back in the suburbs._

_"Hey," a voice suddenly said to his left. Marvin looked over to see a tall man, taller than him, standing there. Well, more leaning on the bar than standing. His tight designer shirt was unbuttoned to reveal his chest, and his ever-tighter pants really highlighted to Marvin just how great the man's ass was. The man smiled at Marvin, and the older man felt himself wilt as he looked at the shining white teeth. "What's a pretty man like you doing all alone?"_

_Marvin chuckled._

_"Could say the same to you," he remarked._

_"What's your name then, cutie?"_

_Marvin blushed. **Actually** blushed. _

_"Marvin," he found himself saying. In places like this, he usually gave a fake name like Josh or Tom or Steve, but this unnaturally stunning man seemed to have brought down all his defenses._

_"Marvin," the tall man mused, perching himself on Marvin's lap. "That's not a name you hear every day. He-ya, Marvin."_

_"Don't get too excited, I was named after Marvin the Martian."_

_That was the first time Marvin heard Whizzer's laugh, and the moment he started to believe in love at first sight._

_"Don't feel bad, my name's Whizzer," Whizzer said, still choking back laughter. Now it was Marvin's turn to chuckle._

_"Now that **is** unusual," he replied. Whizzer downed whatever colourful cocktail he was holding and promptly stuck his tongue down Marvin's throat. _

_Marvin was a little surprised at first to say the least, but he soon melted into the kiss. It felt more natural than anything or anyone he'd ever kissed before, and he dared to snake his arm around Whizzer's waist. The barman seemed pissed that the two were making out virtually on top of the bar, so he shoved them in the direction of the dance floor._

_Whizzer broke away from Marvin, holding the older man close._

_"Wanna take this back to my place?" Whizzer whispered seductively in Marvin's ear- not that he needed any more seducing. Marvin answered with a kiss._

_And the next morning. Oh, the next morning. Waking up in a run-down motel with his body curled around Whizzer's. Marvin wanted to savour that moment forever, and, given the circumstances, he wouldn't have to._

Frantic knocking on the door jolted him back to reality. 

"Marv, please come out," Whizzer shouted from the other side. Marvin pressed his hands to his ears and began muttering gibberish under his breath to distract himself. In a moment of desperation, he wished he was back in that moment, he wished he'd never hit the man he was certain he loved most in the whole world, he wished he wasn't sobbing in his ex-wife's bathroom. 

He wished that, just for a moment, he could disappear and everything would be alright. 

Alas, more knocking interrupted his fantasies. He sobbed even harder, putting more and more pressure on his ears until his vision blurred and his head felt as if it was going to burst. 

"Marvin, c'mon, there's a time and a place to be a stubborn jackass and it is  _not_ here!" Whizzer called, banging on the door again. There were more voices now, concerned voices. Someone was talking to Whizzer but Marvin couldn't quite make out what they were saying. Slowly, he released his hands from his ears, having to literally peel them away from his face. He could feel the flesh stinging already. 

"Go away!" he shouted hoarsely. The voices fell silent for a moment before picking up in hushed whispers. 

"Marvin, sweetie, come on," Whizzer said, sounding desperate yet calm at the same time. His voice was soft and sweet, and Marvin found himself crawling up onto his knees and resting his forehead on the door, not knowing that Whizzer was doing the same on the other side. "Just come out. No-one's mad at you, no-one's going to yell at you."

"Only when it's just you," Marvin replied, his voice muted. There was more whispering, Marvin was pretty sure he heard the word "scram" and then he instinctively knew that he and Whizzer were alone. Reaching up and unlocking the door, he threw himself at Whizzer, burying his face in the taller man's stomach. 

Whizzer couldn't help but chuckle a little, gently bringing his arms down to hug Marvin. 

"I'm so sorry," Marvin sobbed into Whizzer's stomach as the other rubbed soothing circles int his back. "I didn't mean to hit you at all, let alone that hard-" 

"It's fine," Whizzer cut him off, gently lowering them both to the floor and sitting propped up against the wall. "I know you didn't mean it, but it still doesn't mean I'm not incredibly pissed off at you." 

Marvin let out a tear-filled laugh, shifting his head so he was looking up at Whizzer whilst still using him as a pillow. 

"I know," he murmured, wiping his nose on his sleeve. 

"And it will come out now and then." 

"I know, I know." 

"Hey, chin up, little duck," Whizzer said, pressing a light kiss to Marvin's temple. 

"You did not just quote Hunger Games to me." 

"I did too. Let's get you home, huh?" 

Marvin ran a finger over Whizzer's multi-coloured cheek. 

"I did that..." he whispered, more to himself than anything. 

"I know," Whizzer replied. "But we'll talk about it in the morning when you're not so exhausted."

Marvin nodded and let Whizzer pick him up, feeling too tired to walk. 

He heard Whizzer say something to Trina, but he couldn't figure out what it was before he fell asleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe that this has had almost 100 hits in less than 24 hours. Thank you you guys! I have no idea where this is going, though. Seriously, I live off of kudos and comments. Please leave feedback, whatever, I'm not fussy.


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected development emerges

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally do not even know what was going through my mind when I wrote this. It might be the last chapter, it might now. I don't know. Just enjoy this
> 
> Also Book of Mormon is mentioned in this here chapter, because why not?

By the time Marvin woke up, there was sunlight streaming through the window, warming up the room. Now, this would have been all well and good, but he and Whizzer lived in a a top-floor apartment and didn't  _have_ a window in their bedroom, which is why he screamed and promptly fell out of bed.

Groaning on the floor as he held his arm close to his chest, Marvin blinked sleep out of his eyes, watching as the door opened and Whizzer rushed in, helping Marvin sit up and fussing over him. Marvin couldn't help but notice that the bruise on Whizzer's face had matured overnight, now a huge purple affair that covered most of his cheek. 

"Marvin!? Marvin, honey, I asked if you were okay and your silence is worrying me," Whizzer said, giving Marvin a small shake. 

"I'm fine," Marvin replied distractedly, his eyes fixed on the bruise. "Are you?" 

Whizzer looked to the floor, abashed. 

"Yeah," he finally said, sliding himself onto Marvin's lap in the hopes that it would shut the older man up. It didn't work. 

"It must hurt though," Marvin continued. 

"Why did you fall out of bed?" Whizzer asked, leaning down and gently kissing Marvin. Normally, Marvin would've deepened the kiss, but instead he jerked away. "Why're you holding your arm like that?" Whizzer added, feeling a bit miffed, if he was honest. 

"One, I wasn't sure where I was," Marvin answered. "And two, I fell on it." 

Whizzer took Marvin's arm and softly felt it, checking for any broken bones. 

"It's not broken, just a sprain or something, I'll wrap it up when we get home," he said. "And we're at Trina's. Don't you remember?" 

Marvin shook his head. 

"Last thing I remember is you saying we were going home." 

"Yeah, that was before you fell into a sleep of the dead and I realised that I couldn't lug your heavy ass all the way home." 

Marvin giggled, resting his head in the crook of Whizzer's arm. 

"Pretty sure I had a spooky Mormon hell dream," he teased. Whizzer groaned. 

"Please can we  _not_ bring up my brother?" 

"We need to go round to your mum's for dinner sometime, remind me to call her when we get home." 

Whizzer laughed. 

"You did wake up once," he said somewhat shyly. 

"Anything interesting happen?" Marvin asked, looking up. 

"You told me you loved me and..." 

"And?" 

Whizzer paused, taking a few deep breaths. Marvin began to get frightened. 

"And you asked me to marry you."

Marvin burst into coughs and splutters, staring at Whizzer with wide eyes. His hands went to his pocket, and he found that the small velveteen box he'd been carrying with him was missing. He looked back to Whizzer, who was trying to keep a straight face, but the huge grin spreading across it was betraying his true emotions. Marvin held his breath, looking at Whizzer hopefully. 

"I said yes," the tall man simply said. 

It was barely half a second before Whizzer was engulfed by Marvin. "You had a ring and everything." He held up his hand as if to prove this, showing off the ring. The sunlight bounced off of the shining gold and settled itself on the opposite wall. 

"I've had it for about a week," Marvin admitted bashfully, his face now a bright shade of red. "I couldn't find the right time, and I thought you were going to say no." 

Whizzer scoffed at that.

"Why would I say no?" he asked, hooking his arm around Marvin's neck, not in a  _I'm going to choke you_ fashion, just in a  _I love you and totally want to kiss you right now because we're a sickeningly sweet couple_ fashion. "I'm gonna get married to the most beautiful, charming, clever, sexy man in the whole world. Why would I pass up that chance?" 

"I didn't realise you were marrying yourself," Marvin remarking, making Whizzer smile and kiss him with such ferocity and passion that Marvin knew immediately what the younger man wanted. "Not here!" he giggled, pushing him away gently. "Jason's in the next room!" 

Whizzer made a  _huh, so he is_ face and held out his hand to examine the ring. It was a simple affair, a plain gold band, but on the inside was inscribed in tiny letters  _where would I be if I had not loved you?_ Or something thereabouts. Whizzer knew he'd have to get the magnifying glass out to it later. 

"How do we tell everyone?" he asked, the thought having suddenly hit him. Marvin thought for a moment, chewing adorably on his lip as he did so. After a minute or so, he smirked. 

"I have an idea." 

888888

It wasn't long before walked downstairs hand in hand, Whizzer purposely showing the ring to see who'd notice first. It was a fun game. Not as fun as some of the other games they played, but still fun.

They came across Mendel first. To be fair to the poor bloke, he was still half-asleep and yawning, clutching his cup of coffee like a lifeline. He mumbled a quick "hello" to them and they continued on to the kitchen. 

Next were the lesbians. They smiled tiredly at them. Cordelia's eyes drifted down to their joint hands. Whizzer felt Marvin stiffen, but Cordelia didn't seem to react. 

"Aw, you two made up!" she squealed. The two smiled sappy smiles and nodded. 

Jason was fourth. They really thought the game would be up here, but the kid had been dragged out of bed by his mother and looked as if he wanted to drown himself in his bowl of Fruit Loops. 

Unexpectedly, it was Trina who noticed first. She was talking- well, more like ranting- to them about something or other that had happened at a PTA meeting when it happened. 

"And then Pamela said-  _oh my God, Whizzer is that a ring?_ " 

Whizzer smiled and began to giggle, nodding as he held his hand up. Trina squealed, pulling them both into a bone-crushing hug. Jason's head flew up, and there was a smile on the boy's face. 

"You two are getting married!!!" he shouted practically loud enough for the whole street to hear. Normally, Trina would have shushed him and told him off, but currently she was being louder than he was, so that would have been more than a little hypocritical. 

"You're happier than when  _we_ got engaged," Marvin joked, one arm around Whizzer's waist as the lesbians rushed in with more congratulations, demanding to see the ring. Mendel was... somewhere. No-one was quite sure. 

"I looked right at it!" Cordelia fumed as the women pried Whizzer away from Marvin, examining the ring thoroughly. The four instantly delved into talks of arches, bouquets and buffets, so Marvin knew he was officially out of his depth, moving away from his boyf- no,  _fiancè_ and leaning on the breakfast bar, where Jason had abandoned his cereal and was grinning at his father.

"I can't believe you and Whizzer are getting married!" he said excitedly. Marvin chuckled and nodded in agreement. 

"Hey, you might get to meet some of Whizzer's family," Marvin said. Jason's face lit up, then collapsed in confusion. 

"I thought Whizzer's family kicked him out?" 

Marvin paused, considering whether or not to change the subject. Considering what Jason already knew, he shrugged his concern off and continued. 

"His father kicked him out, much to his mother's not to. He has a twin and a couple of other siblings, I think." 

Jason's eyes were widerer than dinner plates. 

Ruffling his son's hair, Marvin moved off deeper into the house to seek out Mendel. He found the psychiatrist in the dining room, typing away at something on his laptop. He looked up momentarily to see Marvin loitering in the doorway before looking back down and waving his hand to say  _come in._ There was an awkward silence with the constant tapping of keys before Mendel slammed the lid shut, looking up at Marvin with a tired smile as he rubbed one eye with his finger. 

"What can I do for you?" he said, stifling a yawn. Marvin shifted uncomfortably. 

"Um, Ineedangermanagementandyou'retheonlyoneItrusttodoitproperlysowillyoupleasebemyangermanagementperson?" Marvin blurted all in one go. Now, most people wouldn't have been able to decipher that, but Mendel was an 80-dollars-an-hour psychiatrist, and had heard a lot worse. He smiled and nodded, and Marvin seemed to visibly relax. 

"So, what's all the shouting about?" Mendel asked. "Please don't tell me Trina's on about Pamela from PTA again." 

Marvin smiled shyly, running his hand through his hair. His sprained wrist gave a twinge of annoyance, but he ignored it. 

"Whizzer and I are engaged," he said, addressing the floor more than Mendel. 

"Congratulations!" the psychiatrist exclaimed, clapping Marvin, who smiled bashfully, on the shoulder. 

"Marvin!" Whizzer's voice drifted in from the kitchen, making the two men turn to the door. "Where are you, my sweet little donut?" 

Marvin's face lit up like Rudolph's nose. 

"Dining room," he called back. It wasn't long before Whizzer's head poked round the doorframe, smiling broadly at his fiancè. 

"Ready to go home, sweetcheeeks?" he asked, smirking at Marvin's red face. 

"What's with all the nicknames?" Marvin asked as he nodded, beginning to walk towards the doorway. 

"We're engaged now, the nicknames symbolise my commitment to you, Whizzer replied. 

"I honestly don't know whether to be flattered or offended." 

Whizzer laughed, but when Marvin reached up to caress his face, his fingers brushed the bruise and the younger man jerked away, hissing in pain. Suddenly, it all came rushing back to Marvin exactly why they were at Trina's in the first place. He looked down at his hands, watching as he clenched and unclenched his fist. 

"You should hit me," he said quietly. Whizzer looked at him in alarm and Mendel stepped cautiously forward. 

"I'm sorry!?" Whizzer spluttered. Marvin glared at him, but there was no real malice behind it. 

"You heard me," he said. "It's only fair, isn't it?" 

"But you weren't thinking straight, you didn't know what you were doing!" Whizzer protested. "I could never knowingly hit you in a non-sexual," Mendel made a face, "way without wanting to slap myself into oblivion every time I looked at you all scared and upset!" 

"That's how I feel!" Marvin said, his tone pleading. "And I won't stop feeling that way until you hit me back!" 

"It doesn't  _work_ like that," Whizzer tried to explain, but Marvin was getting more and more agitated, eventually hiding his face in his shaking hands, letting no-one- not even Whizzer- touch him. Mendel dragged the tall man over to the corner of the room. 

"You're going to have to hit him," Mendel whispered. Whizzer looked scandalized.  

"What the hell!" he hissed back. "No way!" 

"Just give him a punch in the arm or something. You have brothers, right?"

Whizzer shrugged. 

"A couple." 

"Didn't you lot play-fight?" 

"Bitch, me and my brothers full-on  _wrestled._ "

"Well, you know what I mean!" Mendel said in a hushed voice, looking at Whizzer. "Please? Just get him talking again." 

Whizzer's face softened and he glanced back at Mendel as he approached Marvin, biting his lip as he did so. 

"Marv?" he said in a soft voice as he got near. "It's only me." 

He missed off the  _baby_ at the end. 

Reaching forward, Whizzer screwed his eyes shut and clenched his fist. He couldn't even bear to watch as he lightly punched Marvin on the arm. He opened his eyes slowly to see Marvin gradually bringing his face out of his hands. 

"That wasn't hard enough," Marvin said faintly. 

"What more do you want me to do?" Whizzer begged, tears coming to his eyes. "Marvin, please don't make me do this!" 

Mendel could see the situation going downhill very quickly. Whizzer was about to start crying, looking at Marvin was begging eyes, and Marvin himself was looking kind of angry again. Stepping inbetween the two, Mendel gave Whizzer a look that said  _leave this to me._ Whizzer understood and nodded, stepping away as he blinked back tears. 

"Hey, Marvin?" Mendel whispered. "Talk to me, buddy." 

"We have to be equal," Marvin sniffed in a teary voice, sounding oddly empty. The anger seemed to have dissipated. "I need to be punished for what I did." 

Whizzer opened his mouth to say something presumably dirty, but Mendel shushed him by holding up his index finger. 

"Why do you think you need to be punished?" he asked, going into full psychiatrist mode. "Why can't you just forgive and forget?" 

"Because if you do something wrong, you have to be punished," Marvin said, sounding confused. "Isn't that the way society works? Crime must be met with punishment, or our entire society would collapse." 

Mendel decided not to question the deep philosophical questions posed by that statement and focus on the object at hand. 

"But if Whizzer does something wrong, you don't punish him." 

"Yeah, but Whizzer's a good person." 

"Why aren't you?" 

Marvin gave Mendel an  _are you completely retarded?_ look before going over to Whizzer and framing the bruise with his hands. 

"Can't I punish you some other way?" Whizzer asked, desperate now. "No sex for a week, there." 

"Whiz, you and I both know that would last about thirty seconds," Marvin replied. 

"Hell right, you honky lil' ass." 

Mendel glared at Whizzer, begging him to stop. "Okay, fine. You know how I want a dog, but you won't let me get one because you say they're dirty disgusting creatures?" 

Marvin nodded, not liking where this was going. "You let me get a puppy, and you have to actually help me look after it, like walking it every so often and whatnot." 

Marvin thought about it for a moment. 

"Are you sure this would make it better?" he asked slowly. 

"Definitely." 

Marvin paused for a decent amount of time before nodding very gradually. Whizzer smiled broadly, rocking back and forth on his heels as he hugged Marvin fiercly. 

"Oh, we have  _got_ to go and look at puppies this afternoon!" he squealed. "We should get a border collie. I know a guy-" 

And that's how Marvin and Whizzer became engaged and got themselves a puppy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked that! Do you guys want more, because if you want more I can write more.

**Author's Note:**

> Part 2 coming soon! Please leave kudos and comments!


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